The cervical spine misalignment associated with forward head and cervical lordosis, which frequently is accompanied by round shoulders and round upper back, can result over time from one or a combination of factors such as 1) a subconscious slumping in an effort to alleviate the pain of neck injury or similar trauma, 2) a general weakening of the muscles of the neck, shoulders and/or upper back and 3) habitual inattention to proper posture. Persons with the condition of forward head or cervical lordosis commonly lack the strength, motivation and/or perseverance necessary to endure the rigors of unassisted therapeutic neck exercises designed to overcome the problem. In their attempt to re-educate the pertinent muscles (along with the subconscious mind) for the purpose of achieving and maintaining proper alignment of the cervical spine, they often are confronted with more impediments than they can overcome alone, including muscle atrophy, low energy level, pain, reduced neck mobility and the subconsciously ingrained habit of slumping. For this reason, the self-administered chin tucks and other exercises that are often prescribed by physical therapists to help correct the stooping carriage of the head and neck do not enjoy a particularly high success rate. Such incorrect head and neck posture and its frequently concomitant pain and muscle dysfunction, however, can be remedied or at least improved in many cases with proper help. What is needed and what has heretofore been unavailable is a means of providing safe, effective assistance with the initial phases of neck exercise therapy, so that the affected individual eventually will be able to engage in unassisted exercise in order to develop the muscle strength and tone necessary for healthy, proper head and neck position.
The various apparatus which to date have been devised to improve or offset the physical condition(s) of the human neck can be grouped into three principal categories:
1. traction therapy devices which apply tension to the head as means of stretching muscles and/or the spinal column, e.g., the U.S. patents of Cushman (U.S. Pat. No. 3,847,146), Rabjohn (U.S. Pat. No. 3,710,787), Jones (U.S. Pat. No. 4,583,532), Corcoran (U.S. Pat. No. 3,596,655) and Barthe (U.S. Pat. No. 3,621,839), the Canadian patent of Corcoran (980,199) and the French patent of Laur (1,371,332); PA0 2. support devices which function to hold the head erect or support it in a desired position, e.g., the U.S. patents of de Kanawati, et al. (U.S. Pat. No. 5,010,898), Carnahan (U.S. Pat. No. 3,643,996), Zuesse (U.S. Pat. No. 4,161,946) and PA0 3. strength development devices which provide predetermined resistance for the purpose of augmenting and, in some cases, evaluating neck muscle strength, e.g., the U.S. patents of McIntyre et al. (U.S. Pat. No. 4,893,808), Forrest (U.S. Pat. No. 4,278,249), Oehman, Jr. et al. (U.S. Pat. No. 4,768,779) and Jones (U.S. Pat. No. 4,989,859). See also "The Super Neck Developer" in Coach & Athlete, Vol. XXXXI, No. 4, January/February 1979.
None of the aforementioned categories of apparatus is designed appropriately for addressing the types of cervical misalignment associated with the conditions of forward head and cervical lordosis. But of the three categories, the strength development devices probably come closest to constituting prior art with respect to the present invention simply because they share with the present invention the common goal of conditioning the muscles of the neck. Such neck strength development devices of the art of record, however, are not directly applicable to nor suitable for the initial stages of remedying the condition of abnormal forward head and neck placement, because they ignore the physical limitations of many persons who have said problem. Neck strength development devices, rather than assisting neck movement, are designed to provide a predetermined resistance to said movement, which is precisely what is not initially needed by persons trying to correct the head/neck posture and cervical spine misalignment addressed by this disclosure. Said neck strength development apparatus have possible application at later stages of the therapy, if desired, to further strengthen the affected muscles, but only after the minimal strength needed to begin correcting abnormal forward head and neck placement has been achieved.
In brief, there has been no provision in known prior art for mechanically assisting persons with the condition of forward head or flexible cervical lordosis in the initial stages of a therapeutic neck exercise program. The present invention, however, offers a solution by providing an apparatus which administers precisely the type and amount of mechanical assistance needed by such persons.